July 23, 2016

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” Mark 8:29

You don't have to be a believer to begin following Christ. His early disciples were slow to "get it" when it came to faith in Christ.

You don't have to be a saint to begin following Jesus. Everyone of His disciples were sinners when the first began to follow Him.

But there will be defining moments as you follow Christ that will confront you with His claims and what you choose will change you forever.

We find Peter and the disciples at just such a moment in this verse from Mark's Gospel. They had experienced a great miracle when Jesus feed 4,000 with a few spare morsels of food. Then they saw Him restore sight of a blind man. Witnessing those supernatural events should have provided clear evidence of Who Jesus was. Yet, when Jesus asked them point blank, "Who am I?" there was only one who answered and for once Peter got it right!

"You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!"

Even though you may begin following Jesus without knowing Who He is once you are confronted with the truth of His true identity you can never be the same. This is a defining moment that will identify you as a disciple or as a doubter.

In this instance, Peter stepped up and declared Jesus as the "Messiah". "Messiah" is the Hebrew word for "Anointed One". The Greek equivalent of Messiah is "Christ".

Life changes the moment you finally understand Who Jesus REALLY is. Life changes when you fully grasp Who He is! Life changes because you change once you meet Jesus face to face you are confronted by His glory and His love and His righteousness and your own lack of the same. It is a defining moment! You cannot remain the same! 

It matters that Jesus is the Messiah!

It matters that you know it!

But what really matters is who you do about it!

He may be THE Messiah but until you surrender to Him and make Him YOUR Messiah you will not benefit from all He has to offer.

Have you declared Him your Messiah?

Have you confessed your need of Him?

Have you received Him for the forgiveness of your sins?

Have you anointed Him as your Savior and Lord?

July 22, 2016

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." Colossians 3:12-14

So, now you know what a follower of Christ is supposed to wear! 

You need to know how to clothe yourself in those virtues of Christian love. Before you can put on the new you must take off the old:

"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator." Colossians 3:5-10

How can you put on compassion if you don't take off these things?

You can't!

How can you put on kindness if you don't take off these things?

You can't!

How can you clothe yourself in humility unless you take off these things?

You can't!

How can you put on gentleness if you don't take off these filthy things?

You can't!

How can you put on patience it you are wearing these dirty rags?

You can't!

I remember playing tackle football in the lot next to the E.U.B. Church on Sunday afternoons when I was a kid. We would play in the rain or in the snow but even on a fair weather day I would come home so filthy dirty I wasn't allowed in the house. I was sent to the back porch where I was told to take off the soiled clothes and handed some suitable to entering the house. So, I couldn't get in the house until I had clean clothing and I couldn't put on clean clothing until I took off the dirty ones.

That's how it is in God's house. You must take off the old and put on the new so you can enter in.

July 21, 2016

The dress code for Jesus followers has changed over the years. Original Christ followers wore robes and sandals just as He did. But if Jesus followers of 2016 were to dress like that it would be weird.

When I first started following Jesus the prevailing style was long-sleeved blouses and ankle-length skirts for ladies and long sleeved white shirts with skinny black neckties and black slacks. That's how serious believers dressed.

Shortly thereafter came a period of revival that reached all the way into the counter culture of the day giving birth to the "Jesus People" movement. Their dress of choice was often bell bottomed jeans, a t-shirt and either sandals or boots.

Not long after that came the advent of the double-knit leisure suit complemented by polyester wide collared shirts. Of course, you had to have a wide white belt to hitch up your trousers and platform shoes to compete your stylish statement.

Three piece suits became popular for awhile which meant a jacket with wide lapels, matching slacks and a vest. Match that with a nice dress shirt and wide tie and you were dressed for church or anything else worth going to.

Nowadays you can wear whatever matches your mood at the moment and no one really cares. Few even notice.

The point is the fickleness of the fashion world. Clothing styles change almost as quickly as hairstyles. If you have something that goes out of style store it in the attic because it will likely be stylish again.

But the wardrobe prescribed for Christ-followers in the first century by the Apostle Paul has never gone out of style. Nor will it ever!

Here's why:

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." Colossians 3:12

Regardless of what's hanging in your closet or on the racks at Macy's if you are a follower of Christ you MUST choose to clothe yourself EVERY DAY with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Paul dressed that way.

The disciples dressed that way.

All the saints of the ages have clothed themselves that way.

Now all of them are clothed in the Glory of God in their eternal home!

Anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ but refuses or neglects to clothe himself with these Christ-like virtues is either misguided or mistaken.

So, how will you clothe yourself today?

July 20, 2016

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." Colossians 3:12

When you are invited by someone famous to be part of something significant you are flattered but you also wonder what you should wear.

The Apostle Paul answered that question for all Christ-followers for all time. Because of the love that God has for His followers they are to express that love to others by clothing themselves with compassion, kindness, humility AND "gentleness" AND "patience".

"Gentleness" in this verse means "to adjust your strength to meet another at his weakness". Gentleness is the ability to help another who is struggling but and do it sensitively so he doesn't feel shamed or embarrassed.

A person clothed in gentleness does not help others from a position of strength or superiority.

"Patience" literally means "to slow down to the speed of another". A patient person is willing to move at the speed of the one he is trying to help. An impatient people by nature becomes irritated with one who cannot keep up with him. But rather than giving into the irritation and the impatience, the patience person adjusts to the slower pace for the sake of relationship.

Jesus came to call people into relationship with Him and with one another. To make that possible He expressed His great love by having compassion, showing kindness, being humble, dealing gently and demonstrating extraordinary patience.

Aren't you thankful for how He loves you? Are you grateful that He calls you away from rule-keeping, religious ritual and life-less traditions?

If you are you must clothe yourself with those same virtues as you build relationships with others.

July 19, 2016

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility......" Colossians 3:12

So what is a Christ-follower supposed to wear in order to be readily identified as a Christian?

Paul told the believers at Colossi to "clothe yourself" with" compassion, kindness and HUMILITY.

What did He mean by that?

The word used for "humility" implies that you see yourself and others honestly in light of God's grace. No matter what position or status or celebrity you have attained in your life, you are a product of what God is doing for you through Christ. 

Regardless of how little another person has accomplished or possesses or how low his status might be, he too, is a product of God's grace.

Clothe yourself in that humble awareness that as fellow recipients of God's grace you are on common ground with every other believer.

The longer you follow Christ and the closer you follow Christ the more aware you should be of how precious and vast God's grace is!

So, a true Christ-follower puts on the garment of grace and grows increasingly more humble the longer he follows.

A Christ-follower takes his eyes off the mirror and focuses upward to Jesus and outward to others. A properly clothed follower of Jesus is so amazed by the grace of God in his life he humbly honors others as objects of God's grace as well.

My I humbly suggest you clothe yourself in His humility?

July 18, 2016

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness....." Colossians 3:12

Jesus once told His followers not to be overly concerned about what they wear but trust the Heavenly Father to provide for them.

Obviously, God is concerned enough about our physical well-being and according to the Apostle Paul, He cares how we adorn ourselves spiritually as well.

As Christ-followers we are to put on compassion AND kindness.

Kindness has a good connotation in English but an even more powerful one in Greek. The Greek rendering has the idea of "loaning your strength" someone who is struggling. But when you loan your strength to one who is weak you are careful not to do it from a position of superiority.

Kindness is helping someone else at a time they need some extra strength and loaning them strength in a way you would want to be strengthened if you were having a weak moment. When you are weak you feel vulnerable and afraid and you don't need someone who wants to help you to make himself feel better. So, when you loan your strength to someone else do it to help them not for selfish reasons.

I'm sure there has been a time or two in your life when you were feeling weak and someone stronger came beside loaning you the strength you needed. 

Kindness is what Jesus extends to you on a daily basis as you acknowledge your weakness to Him. He does it generously and yet graciously.

He calls you to do the same! Clothe yourself with kindness.

July 17, 2016

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion....." Colossians 3:12

Christ-followers are to clothe themselves in the virtues of Jesus. The more a Christ-follower resembles Christ, the better!

Jesus wore a robe and sandals, so obviously that is not what I am suggesting. This admonition was written well before the invention of Velcro, buttons or zippers so it is apparent we aren't talking about literal clothing.

Paul's message here is that Christ-followers in their attitudes, actions and demeanor should resemble the nature of Jesus. If you are around others regularly over a period of time, they should recognize you as a Christ-follower without you having to mention it.

One Christ-like virtue is compassion. In the Greek language in which this was written, compassion had the idea of "feeling it in your gut". The word literally is translated "bowels". You are to feel the sorrow or pain of another person deep in your "gut".

Isn't it true that when you are suddenly sorrowful that is where it hits you? Haven't you heard distressing news and felt it in the pit of your stomach?

What should a Christ-follower wear?

He should put on compassion!

But to put on a new article of "clothing" what must you do? You go into the fitting room and you take off the shirt you are wearing so you can try on the one you want to get.

In the same way, you cannot put on compassion until you take off what you are wearing. You can't be clothed with compassion if you are wearing a critical spirit. You can't put on compassion until you take off your prejudice. You can't be clothed with compassion if you are judgmental.

A Christ-follower takes off anything that keep him from putting on compassion for others.

Will you be clothed with the compassion of Christ today?

What must you put off in order to put on compassion?